1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vending machine for selectively dispensing cigars of varying sizes on selection by a user.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Vending machine dispensing various products such as cigarettes and candy are well known in the art. One type of vending machine generally comprises a plurality of coils with food or other objects to be dispensed interposed between adjacent loops of a coil. The user can view the objects through a window of the vending machine and make a selection of desired product upon depositing sufficient funds into the machine. The product is dispensed when the coil of the selected product rotate one revolution which causes the object closest to the user to fall into a receptacle where it can be retrieved by the user.
Other types of vending machines such as those used for cigarettes, provide a series of trays within which the cigarette packages are stacked. The user may select an appropriate brand after depositing sufficient funds in the machine. This causes one package of the selected brand of cigarettes to be released into a receptacle for retrieval by a user.
These vending machines are suitable for dispensing objects which can readily fit within the loops of coils for dispensing or which are of substantially uniform size such as, for example, cigarette packages. Many types of cigars are sold one cigar at a time, rather than as packaged sets. Cigars come in various sizes, ranging in diameter from about 1/2 inch to 1 inch (or even larger) and ranging in length from about 3 inches to about 8 inches in length, for the most popular types. These prior art machines are not suitable for storing and dispensing single cigars of varying diameter and length.
The popularity of cigar smoking has increased considerably and vending machine access to a wide selection of singularly dispensed cigars of varying length and diameter is desired. There is consequently a need for a vending machine which can store and dispense cigars of varying diameter and length and which permits visual inspection of those cigars by a user to assist in selection and purchase of a desired cigar. There is also a need for such a vending machine which prevents the dispensing of more than one cigar at a time upon activation to prevent losses caused by inadvertent over dispensing of cigars.